Argentina dirty war suspect may be extradited from U.S.

Prosecutors say man was chief of torture camp

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published 10:00 pm, Tuesday, April 24, 2007

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina -- U.S. Ambassador Earl Anthony Wayne said Tuesday that his government will work with Argentina to return a dirty war suspect arrested in the United States and wanted for trial in the South American nation.

Ernesto Guillermo Barreiro, a retired Argentine army major accused of being the chief interrogator at a dictatorship-era torture center, was arrested this month in Virginia and charged with criminal violations of U.S. visa laws, U.S. officials said.

Argentine prosecutors say Barreiro was responsible for the torture and death of several individuals during Argentina's 1976-83 dictatorship and its dirty war crackdown on dissent.

In a meeting on a range of topics with Justice Minister Alberto Iribarne, Wayne said the United States will work with Argentina's government to ensure Barreiro's return, a U.S. Embassy statement said.

Wayne did not say whether Barreiro would be deported or extradited.

Argentine prosecutors say Barreiro was chief of the much-feared "La Perla" torture camp that operated in central Cordoba province from 1976 to 1979.

Nearly 13,000 people are officially reported as missing during Argentina's 1976-83 military dictatorship. But human rights groups say the toll approaches 30,000 victims.

Argentine authorities say they believe Barreiro went to the United States in 2004, soon after a federal judge called for his detention along with 10 others in connection with the torture and death of a 17-year-old student kidnapped in 1977.